share this article
Dawn
I open my eyes to the soft sound of rain falling outside, and the strong smell of the air and earth. It is still dark, though a few rays of white trickle in from the street light on the main āśrama road, just outside the dormitory. I slowly sit up and remember morning prayers.
कराग्रे वसते लक्ष्मिः
करमध्ये सरस्वति।
करमूले तु गोविन्दः
प्रभाते करदर्शनम्॥
समुद्रवसने देवि
पर्वतस्तनमण्डले।
विष्णुपत्नि नमस्तुभ्यं
पादस्पर्शं क्षमस्वमे॥
Just as I finish, the 4 am bell is rung at the Annakṣetra (canteen). I am not sure at what point I stopped using my alarm clock – but after some months in this routine, my brain and body seem to have synced up to the cycles of the āśrama here. It still surprises me how it’s possible to wake up naturally a minute or two before the bell, every day consistently, just like that. It’s yet another thing I’ve become thankful for.
I select the next white saree and blouse from my short stack of four pairs, glad that this set dried quickly even in this constant rain and saturated humidity. The uniform was initially uncomfortable, a stark contrast from what I used to wear in life outside the āśrama – but I’ve come to love the simplicity and tradition, especially in this climate.
After a quick shower and a little gāyatrī mantra japa, I ensure my jute hand-held bag has the needed books and thermos. Taking my keys and umbrella, I step out of the room, lock it, and walk uphill to the temple.
It’s now 4:35 am. Nagaraj anna, the temple priest, has not yet arrived. I read for a bit on the side portico of the temple until I hear the front doors getting unlocked, then circle around to enter inside.
Nagaraj anna slowly starts lighting the lamps and preparing for the 5:00 am liṅgābhiśeka, while I walk around and offer my prayers to all the devatās in the mandir. Śrī Dakṣiṇāmūrti, Ganeśajī, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Gaṅgā Maiyyā, and of course Śrī Jagadīśvara Svāmī Himself.
By 5:20, the morning rudrābhiśekam is done, and students start trickling in for the first class - Vaidika chanting, at 5:30 am. The few of us early risers that come ahead of time, we open and spread the thick burlap sheets on which everyone will sit. The student designated with ācāryā sevā sets up the microphone and sound system for the teacher who will arrive shortly.
This morning, we are doing a revision of Śrī Sūktam. Once the ācāryā arrives, he offers his prayers inside the garba gṛha and takes a seat on his āsanā. He asks us to chant the entire Śrī Sūktam together at first - then he asks the brahmacārins to chant as a group once, and finally the brahmacāriṇīs as a group.
As a group, our chanting is mostly fine. Rather, the individual mistakes and stumbles that are made, are hidden well. In the end though, ācāryā selects students individually to chant specific lines. The attention to detail in svara, pronunciation and specificity of each Saṃskṛta akśara is one aspect that makes this class beautiful. We learn from the successes and mistakes of our peers, as they chant individually, with hopes that we would be able to chant error-free when it is our own turn.
The 30 minute class flies by, after which the students disperse. Most circle back to their room, though there is a dedicated group of us who diligently go to the Annakṣetra each day at this time, ready to partake in the hot ginger water and morning tea which would now be ready and waiting for us. Several others staying in the āśrama – workers, sevākas, visitors, and such – they also know the value of these warm liquids in the morning. They, too, come to the Annakṣetra at this early hour, and we all share the silence and company together every day, like clockwork.
Once I’ve filled my thermos with tea, I walk back to my room and gather the next set of books needed for the 7 am class. I have about 35 minutes to review the ślokas and notes from yesterday. The amount of reading and understanding needed - of the text itself, as well as the multiple commentaries and lecture notes - is otherwise overwhelming.
At 6:45 am, I walk to the Sarasvatī Nilayam. We students begin chanting the class text, ten minutes before the class starts. By the time ācāryā arrives, we are in a tranquil mindset to tune in for the next hour on an intellectually demanding topic.
Morning
This morning we are going through Śrī Ādi Śaṅkarācāryā’s Vivekacūdāmaṇi, verse number 208 out of the 400+ ślokas of various chandas (meters) and topics. Many of us record the entire class, knowing that we may not grasp everything the first time. We take notes, and respond to questions from the ācāryā as and when he cross-checks our understanding and even memory from previous texts that we have studied.
After class, just after 9 am we are liberated to the Annakṣetra for breakfast. There is sābudānā kicadi today, being Somavāra (Monday). There is some simple tiffin breakfast item daily, and I consciously try to eat light so that I don’t feel sleepy afterwards.
After breakfast, we have some free time. Those of us who have Saṃskṛta class today, review and put the final touches on our homework. Those who don’t, perhaps begin their āśrama sevā duties, or studying and revision. I don’t have class today – as my group meets on two other days of the week – so I walk to the temple again, and walk around it a specific number of times before going for my daily sevā. Other students take a morning walk up and down the main āṣrama road, but I prefer this path around the temple and find it more peaceful, relaxing, and rejuvenating. The greenness everywhere is not to be found anywhere in Mumbai city, for sure.
In the current sevā assignment cycle, I have to sweep two areas of the āśrama daily. I get that done first, after my temple walk, and then go back to my room to study for a couple of hours. By 11:30 am, students assemble again in the Sarasvatī Nilayam for Stotram class.
We were given a book with some tens of stotrams at the beginning of the course, including stotrams on all different devīs, devatās and gurus. By the end of the two years, we will know every single one in the book. We recently finished Annapūrnā Stotram, and just started on Lalitā Sahasranāma Stotram which will take us much longer to learn. Yet, I enjoy the different meters and tunes we learn in this class. I also try to pay attention to the application of Samskṛtam in the stotrams, as well as the constant insight into different specific forms of divinity. Each stotram tells us their favorite things - their preferred colors, foods, places, temples, art forms, and more.
Lunch follows, and we assemble back into the Annakṣetra, this time unlike breakfast because we must chant the entire 15th chapter of the Bhagavad Gītā before the meal starts. We chant this twice a day, once before lunch and once before dinner.
Lunch and dinner are routine now – predictable and safe. There is always rice, roṭi, dāl, one vegetable subji, and buttermilk. On festival days and special occasions – the menu becomes much more elaborate. However, for our daily lunch and dinner, the food is not at all a distraction from the vidyā for which we are here.
Afternoon
Post-lunch, many students meet in the Sarasvatī Nilayam for group study or discussion. Some smaller pairs and triplets go back to the dormitories, choosing to continue in our rooms. I return to the temple for some more solitary study under the front open portico, as the main temple is closed for three hours now in the afternoon.
Once I’ve gotten through my portions for today, I head back to my room for a short nap. Twenty to thirty minutes, the short power nap does wonders. Once I’m awake again, I take quick shower before packing my bag for the afternoon session of Vedānta class. After hot tea at the Annakṣetra, we are back in the Sarasvatī Nilayam, chanting the text again ten minutes before the ācāryā arrives.
Afternoon Vedānta class is Śrīmad Bhagavad Gītā, where we study a few commentaries along with Śaṅkarabhāśyam. More details in Part One of this series. This week, we are wrapping up the 18th and final chapter of the Gītā.
Once this class ends, the day will rush by. I pull out my umbrella as the rain has started again, and walk uphill to the temple where evening ārati will be happening soon. It’s now bustling with localites of Powai, āśrama residents, and even regular devotees and visitors who come from around the country and even world.
Evening
Today is my turn to chant the evening āratī in the temple, on the microphone. Though all the students would be assembling and chanting, singing along with me - there is an assigned rotation of one student each day who chants on the mic, and leads all the follow-and-repeat portions.
At the beginning of the course, this sevā was terrifying.
Now, it’s become a responsibility to look forward to - another chance to practice spaṣṭa Samskṛta pronunciation and Vaidika svaras, another offering to the Higher which we aspire to align ourselves with.
At 6 pm on the dot, Nagaraj anna (the priest) begins with his chanting of a few portions of Rudram and the Devī Sūktam. Once he finishes, I start.
The Vaidika āratī begins with prayers to the specific devīs and devatās here at this mandir, and the prayer extols their names and virtues. Lokasaṅgraha is also part of this humble request, clothed in the words of the ancients, with mantras from the Vedas which have been chanted for thousands of years. The power of the prayer, as well as the sanctity of the temple itself - all are felt reverberating in these 15 - 20 minutes of āratī.
The auspicious Gaṅgā stotram is the final portion of the āratī. This is symbolic - as Gurudev, Swami Chinmayānandā was encouraged to spread the Highest knowledge of our civilization, just as Gaṅgā jī starts in the Himālayās and flows freely down to the plains, without a hesitation to give. Just so, Gurudev’s preceptors, Swami Tapovanam and Swami Sivānanda encouraged him to bring Advaita Vedānta outside the fold of the elevated spiritual centers of India, like Uttarkashi, Haridwar, and Rishikesh.
The knowledge flows from the hills, into the plains of the land
Post-āratī is the final session of the day. The text for this last class, from 7 to 8 pm is typically a bhakti focused text. We started with some simpler prakaraṇa granthas. A favorite of mine was Nārada Bhakti Sūtras. We progressed through the first several kāṇḍas of Rāmacaritamānas, and took a small break from that text for these three months - as Pujya Swami Tejomayānanda jī, the former head of Chinmaya Mission, began Śrīmad Bhāgavata kathā with us during his stay here in the aśrama this year.
Today, we are enraptured with the episode of Vṛtrāsura vadha. The highlight for me is Vṛtra’s backstory, his pūrva janmas, and the final hymn that Vṛtrāsura sings in complete devotion before his liberation from that form. Several students and local attendees are in tears by the end of the kathā today. We conclude with some bhajans, simple Nārāyaṇa Saṅkīrtana, and head back to the Annakṣetra for dinner.
Again, 15th chapter of the Gīta and the same dāl, rice, roṭi, and variety subji. It’s the healthiest, junk-free food I’ve eaten in my entire life.
After dinner, students disperse for the final time today. Many start their night walk, up and down the main āśrama road, discussing the lessons from today or re-listening to their recordings from class.
For me, this is a favorite time to practice chanting. I go back to my room, run through a few stotrams, and chant along with a recording of Lalitā Sahasranāma before calling it a day.
I prepare the books and tasks for the next day, before sleeping around 10:30 pm.
There’s a knock on my door, and I open to find my floormate standing there with a bag of mangoes. It’s high mango season here on the campus, and practically every tree is bursting with the famous hapus or Alphonso mango which Mumbai is renowned for. My floormate was very sweet to have collected some today and thought of me in her distribution. I enjoy some chat with her before we say our goodnights.
The sound of the rain is the last thing I hear, in this peaceful day’s lifestyle. I know it will be the same tomorrow, and the next day - we repeat this routine seven days a week, with no break on Sundays, either. We only have a different routine of sevā, classes, and pūja during festival days.
I’ve come to love it, as each day is unique, though they are the same.
Epilogue
I grew up abroad, and had gone through Chinmaya Mission’s Bala Vihar and Yuva Kendra programs in my childhood and youth. At some point during my undergraduate years, it was clear to me that pursuing medicine and settling ‘comfortably’ into life like my seniors and peers - this was not really something I felt a strong drive to strive after.
I felt that studying in Chinmaya Mission’s Vedānta course was an opportunity I shouldn’t miss - in order to gain a grip and understanding on the bigger picture of life, no matter what I chose to do next.
Gaining this knowledge and training at that time, rather than waiting for retirement or old-age, as the stereotype goes, made sense to me
When I joined the course, I saw that many did not have the Chinmaya background which I had. Most students actually came from non-Chinmaya backgrounds, each finding their way to Mumbai through their own unique paths, experiences, and guidance from various other sampradāyas, institutions, and organizations as well.
And this is exactly what Pūjya Swami Chinmayānanda intended for the Vedānta course to be:
- a beacon of light for anyone who wanted to study sincerely and gain this vidya
- a modern-day gurukula, to teach Advaita Vedānta to young men and women who would then take the knowledge back to their communities
- an ideal opportunity for all those who want to learn, serve, and grow as individuals, to benefit their civilization and society
- a benchmark course in Bhārata which is standard in its syllabus and traditional in its teaching method
Gurudev envisioned that students from all folds of society - and moreover, students from diverse sampradāyas - would seek out this institution to gain a grounding in their life pursuits. These students can, of course, choose to serve within Chinmaya Mission after graduating from the program. However, the students can also choose to pursue their other personal and professional goals, or even return to their former institutions and organizations to take their service forward. There was never a mandate, as such, that the course would be exclusive to those who wish to serve only within Chinmaya Mission, and this tradition continues even today.
The course is not for those weak of head or heart. It does require an immense amount of discipline, commitment, and sincerity
With these, however, and with Īśvara kṛpā - the course becomes an anchor for navigating through the rest of life. The sādhaka is then able to constantly develop oneself as an individual, connect to the Higher, and thus become a better instrument to contribute positively to the present civilization and society around us.